In this article, you’ll find the most important five reasons why it’s great to have respite for caregivers and seniors.
SOCIAL CONNECTION IS IMPORTANT FOR SENIORS AND THEIR CAREGIVERS
Respite allows for greater social connectedness for both caregivers and their senior loved ones. Caregivers need to invest time in self-care, which often involves spending time socializing with friends and family and talking about things other than caregiving.
For seniors, one of the key benefits of respite care is the opportunity to form one or more new social connections.
Many seniors deal with feelings of isolation. Even seniors who have close, frequent contact with their families go through the experience of seeing their social circles shrink.
Families of seniors who pay for respite care are gaining new members in these diminishing social circles.
At Custom Care Solutions, we aim to match seniors with caregivers they can get along with on a personal level – caregivers who speak the same languages, or who share interests or hobbies with the seniors they’re caring for.
THE BEST CARE COMES FROM CAREGIVERS WHO ARE CARED FOR
Seniors receive better care from caregivers who care for themselves, too.
Caregiver burnout is serious, and someone who is experiencing symptoms of burnout like intrusive thoughts, mood swings, depression or anxiety, and physical manifestations of stress is unlikely to be able to provide care to the best of their ability.
If you’re experiencing burnout, you might be tempted to push through it and prioritize your senior loved one’s well-being over your own.
It’s important to keep in mind that your health and well-being have an impact on theirs and that you owe it to you and your loved ones to be aware of when you require assistance and ask for help.
The breaks you take to take care of yourself are important for you both.
FAMILIAL RELATIONSHIPS NEED TENDING, TOO
Respite is good for your relationship with your senior loved one.
As their primary caregiver, you probably make a lot of suggestions, provide a lot of reminders, and maybe even find yourself issuing instructions.
This might be a pretty major shift in your relationship, especially if you’re caring for a parent.
Our parents are accustomed to looking after us. It’s an adjustment to stop being a caretaker and start needing care instead.
Parents are typically advisors and guidance, not being at the receiving of the advice and guidance. The shifting of roles within your relationship can be difficult for everyone involved.
One way to make this change more comfortable for both our parents and ourselves is to give the relationship some space from time to time.
Small breaks during which your loved one is receiving care and assistance from someone outside of the family can ease the pressures you might be experiencing in your new relationship dynamic with your senior loved one.
If you are not always the one assisting your parent with their Activities of Daily Living, that leaves a space in which you can preserve your parent/child relationship.
